Music infuses most aspects of my life. Anything percussive drives my workouts. Music festivals are highlights of my social calendar. Certain voices, such as Hanna Reid's from London Grammar, serve as revelations. Debussy is an old friend, and Sirius XMU and Alt Nation keep me company to and from campus. I have 57 playlists in iTunes, each calibrated for a specific context or to elicit a certain emotion I'm searching for at a given moment.
For all my deep commitments as a consumer of all things sonic (and my knowledge of certain musicians within a historical context), I know preciously little about music -- its vocabulary, structure, and theory -- beyond the basics. This certainly hampers an informed discussion of music, particularly music that is foreign to my own cultural diet. Nonetheless, as I write this post, I am listening to Pangue Lingua ("Sing, My Tongue"), a mass (choral music usually used to accompany the eucharistic liturgy) by the French composer Josquin des Perez (1450-1521). It's exotic, and pleasing too, to my ear. So, let's listen to some Renaissance music together.
Musical forms in the Western tradition change slowly. Dominant in the Middle Ages was plainsong, basically the singing in unison of one melodic line. By the end of the Middle Ages, some polyphony had been introduced. Polyphony entails two separate melodies playing simultaneously in such a way to sound pleasing and unified. Renaissance music is deeply marked by this transition to polyphony. One of the age's great composer, des Prez, was a master of polyphonic textures and is one of the first composers to have works performed long after his death. For a time, he was involved with the Pope's own choir, the Sistine Chapel Choir, founded in 1473 by Sixtus IV. Google this choir. It still exists. Deutsche Grammophon has an awesome recording of this choir -- recorded in the Chapel itself!
Speaking of the Chapel, des Prez apparently scribbled his name somewhere in the Chapel.
Enough delays and on to your task. Google des Prez. You will find a number of audio recordings available when you hit the "video" tab after entering your search. Pick one. Be patient. Listen. Pangue Lingue and Miserere mei Deus (the latter, in my opinion, is indescribably beautiful) are my top suggestions. Should this not work out for you, I'll give you another option: Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina. Palestrina is THE superstar of Renaissance music, as he was quite en vogue given the mood of the Catholic Counter-Reformation (a story for a few weeks from now). Though Palestrina is two generations later than des Prez, he still runs in the polyphonic lane. However, his polyphony stylings are so impressive that they imitate a later musical texture: homophony (which will become the standard in the age of Handel and Mozart). His Missa Papae Marcelli is still performed widely today.
Using what musical vocabulary you have, tell us what you like about des Prez or Palestrina (and what pieces you sampled). If it bores you, fine, but tell us why -- why are you bored or alienated? Tell us about the context in which you listed to this Renaissance music. Did you really listen? If it was just background music while you Facebooked, how might that impact your sonic experience? Does the fact that this is mostly sacred music enhance or detract from your experience? Do you listen to any music in sacred contexts or for transcendent/spiritual purposes? Are there any pre-20th century composers that you've listened to or heard about that your interested in exploring at future date (in this class or later in your life)? You need not answer all these questions, but hopefully they've given you enough to launch your comments.
As always, remember your audience.
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ReplyDeleteBefore delving into my actual post, I would like to acknowledge that this prompt naturally piqued my interest as a music enthusiast. Not only that, but last summer, I took a music history course called Survey of American Music (which, contrary to its name, also examined European, African, and a little bit of Spanish styles of music). We did not specifically cover the Renaissance (beginning, instead, with the 1700s), but I do see a connection between the course’s content and this prompt.
ReplyDeleteWith that said, I chose to sample Josquin des Prez’s “Miserere mei Deus”. To start off with a bit of context, I did actively listen to this. Aside from making notes about what I was hearing, I focused much of my attention on the music, which was easy to do with my headphones. It is worth mentioning that the version I listened to was 18:51 long, perhaps much longer than others. However, I will not complain; I enjoyed listening to it in general. In particular, though, the first aspect I liked about it was the canon in the very beginning. In music, a canon is where one section begins with a melodic sequence, then another section comes in ‘on top’ of it with the same melodic sequence, then another, and so on and so forth. In this work, the tenors began singing, then the basses, and then the sopranos*, each with the same notes and lyrics. This, to me, created a nice ‘layer’ effect, and des Prez did not stop there. Throughout the work, I noticed many instances where each section would ‘echo’ the same lyrics, albeit now with slightly different notes and rhythms. This brings me to the second aspect I liked about the work, which was its robust harmonies. In my opinion, des Prez did a great job in creating harmonies that are pleasing to the ear. Because this work, in general, sounds like it is in a minor key, that last sentence might seem like an oxymoron. I personally believe songs in minor keys sound just as beautiful, if not more so, than songs in major keys. Lastly, a third aspect I liked about the work would have to be its polyphony, a term I learned from Survey of American Music. The varying harmonic layers and textures previously mentioned are what created this polyphony. However, what I like about it in this work is that is ‘organized’; it does not sound like a bunch of random noises happening at once. I will admit: at times, it made it somewhat difficult for me to pick out what the singers were actually saying, but I was able to pick out “spiritu” and “miserere mei deus”, the title of the work. But in general, having many different vocal parts ultimately makes this work, and choral works of any type, really, more interesting than if everyone just sang in unison, monophonic structure. These three aspects are ones that I really enjoyed about des Prez’s work. If I had to sum it up in one word, I would definitely say ‘otherworldly’, because I genuinely felt like I was taken to another place (instead of just my room at home) while listening.
I am not entirely sure if he counts as a true ‘pre-20th century’ composer as he did live through the early 20th century, but, I would definitely want to explore Debussy’s stylistic choices. I have heard many of his works (“La Fille Aux Cheveux de Lin”, “Album Leaf”, “Golliwog’s Cakewalk”, and “Prélude from Suite Bergamasque”, to name only a few), and played his “Rêverie” on xylophone. I love his music, and it would be a dream to study it further (as well as potentially compare his style to that of other French, instrumental composers!)
*As a side note: it was a bit intriguing, and surprising, to me, that Josquin des Prez’s “Miserere mei Deus” only utilizes soprano, tenor, and bass voices. As an alto, I initially felt a little disappointed to be ‘underrepresented’. That aside, however, des Prez’s writing is still very skillful in my eyes.
You went a lot more in depth musically than I did but I appreciate your insight into how Miserere mei, Deus is structured. I definitely agree that because of the nature of Latin, it was very hard to discern certain parts of the song but in some ways I think it's okay not to know what they are saying. As you said, it's an "otherworldly" experience that is hard to describe unless you are experiencing it yourself. That's why, similar to art, it is always nice to listen to music like that live because it takes you to another place entirely.
DeleteThank you, Ethan! You raise a good point about how because "Miserere Mei Deus" is "otherworldly" (to both of us), we need not know exactly what the singers are saying. I also agree with your notion that it would be hard to fully describe this song to others; it is much better to experience firsthand.
DeleteWe have to remember that the incomprehensibility of Latin is not an impediment to the aesthetic pleasure we can derive from the music, specifically, and the Catholic mass, in general. Remember, our Renaissance forebearers by and large did not understand Latin either. The majority of parishioners had not knowledge of Latin but became accustomed to the routine of the mass and liturgical music itself. This actually created mystery...a sense that the Church was a true mediator of something, dare I say it, magical (mind you, hocus pocus comes from hocus corpus...this is the body). So, in some respects, I feel my pitiful knowledge of Church Latin (gained from a short stint as a medieval studies enthusiast) actually liberates me to enjoy the words of the mass and the music of the liturgy on a purely sonic level.
DeleteThank you for putting this further into perspective, Dr. Cleworth! It is very interesting to consider the fact that not even people during the time of the Renaissance entirely understood the Latin language either. I agree with the notion that this just shows how much of an influence music had on them, and now has on us. As you alluded to, regardless of if I knew/understood what they were actually saying or not, I still very much enjoyed the piece. The overlapping, polyphonic nature of it in relation to the lyrics was just something I noticed during my listen.
DeleteHi Lizzy. A while back, I also took that same Survey of American Music class; although some of the terms are a little hazy, I do remember covering many of the different types of music studied in American culture. I did not go as in depth as you did explaining everything musically in detail, but I do appreciate your attention to detail as it brings out some things that I never noticed before that give me a new and different respect. Also, although I did not get to listen to Prez’s “Miserere mei Deus”, I am extremely interested based purely just on what you have described as "otherworldly". I will probably take the time to stop and listen to it now just because. Thank you for your response and detailed interest in these renaissance works or art.
DeleteAs I have stated in past posts, I am very much a musician enthusiast, and I would like to add on to that for a second. While the rest of my family was pursuing instrumental music, my mom and her mom both followed the vocal part of music for their whole lives; my grandmother a choir teacher and my mom as simply her student. With that being said, I have a soft spot for choral pieces because it has also been an important part in my families cultural diet.
ReplyDeleteWith my chosen piece I decided to go with an arrangement that only had one person per part-four vocalists all together. This piece that I chose, Kyrie (missa pange lingua), was something of a haunting experience. I listened to it multiple times because I am a believer that if you find something new you need to give it more than one chance. I listened to it though headphones, at my computer, walking around my house, and now simply on repeat as I write my response. I really enjoy the prolonged notes that Prez provided in this piece, as it is quite a slow movement until the very end. Because there was only one person per part, it was easy to distinguish between the different parts, which means that when I listened to it, it felt like a new song each time.
It's not often that I listen to music that was established pre-20th century, but I do have a few that I hold close to my heart. Of course most of this music I find is through band, but I still think it is a nice exposure to have that not many people have the opportunity to have. A majority of those composers are Stravinsky and Tchaikovsky. The closest, and I'm not sure how relatively close it is, that I listen to is soundtracks from cinema and video games. I think many of those composers are overlooked for their brilliance, and I adore the music of Jeremy Soule, John Powell and Howard Shore.
Bryson, I found it very interesting how this piece "felt like a new song each time" to you upon listening multiple times. I am curious now as to how both of us would react to the songs we selected if we listened to them once a day for several days. I know, I just got scientific all of a sudden! We do not actually have to do that experiment, of course, but I imagine that depending on our mood, our perception of these songs could change dramatically. Psychology aside, though, I agree with you that some music requires 'further listening' in order to truly appreciate it. This is particularly the case, I feel, with songs that use certain 'strange', even 'scary' intervals like minor seconds or tritones. I know I did not discuss intervals in my original post, as they were not something that particularly stuck out to me while listening to "Miserere mei Deus". However, they do have the power to make you go, "that doesn't sound right" or, on the contrary, "that is beautiful!"
DeleteStravinsky and Tchaikovsky are wonderful classical composers! Even though I am not as keen on them as with Debussy, I can totally see why they would resonate with you. It would certainly be interesting to delve into their stylistic choices as well.
Bryson, I completely agree with many of the points you made in your post. The song I chose to listen to which was titled "Magnificat" by Des Pres and I also felt like the more I listened to it the more I felt like I was hearing different songs. The first time I listened to the song I used it as background music while I worked on homework and I really did not notice many things about the song beyond the changing instrumentals. Hearing the song in this context did not engage me very much, in fact I found it almost boring and debated turning it off several times! However, I decided to try listening to it one more time while giving it my full attention and I noticed so much more that I did not the first time I heard the song. The second time around I was captivated by the vocals, I can't say that I have ever heard someone sing that beautifully.
DeleteAs with what Lizzy said, I also listened to the song multiple times in different moods and times and felt a different emotion to the song as I listened to it a new time. It's remarkable how sounds and music can affect our moods so easily depending on the context and the tonality of the song. Like if a song is in Minor, it is described as depressing or somber whereas songs in a Major key feel uplifting. I didn't describe that experience in my blog post, but it is indeed a side effect of listening to the song multiple times. Jeremy Soule is a fantastic choice you've listed as a favorite. As cheeky as it sounds his music and atmosphere he created for the game Skyrim was exceptionally beautiful. The theme song for Skyrim is epic sounding and just feels larger than life. I also like how you included Tchaikovsky as he is one of my favorite composers. He is a composer of the romantic period and definitely has some beautiful and thought provoking pieces.
DeleteAll of you touch on something important: listening context matters. Music listened to as an adjunct to multitasking always registers differently for me than listening to live music or music that I approach as a matter of studied listening. With respect to the latter, I am sometimes surprised by how music that I process on first hear as stultifyingly boring can transform into a piece that offers me those episodic moments when the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. So, I applaud all of you posters so far for taking care to push through and have a few listens. And, Ethan, you will have to explain the mechanic of major and minor keys to me. I hear over and over again about the brightness of major keys, and the pensive moods of minor keys. How does this work? I understand tonics. But from there I lost. Both major and minor keys have two half steps (placed differently) -- but why does the placement of these half steps create such a different effect? I await your answer on Tuesday!
DeleteThanks, Bryson. My nephew is a video game enthusiast par excellent, and he has an impressive archival knowledge of the aesthetic history of contemporary games (not just player moves, narratives, etc). I'll have to ask him about Soule and Powell (I am familiar with some some of Shore's film scores). He's a musician as well and has often intimated that he one day would like to compose scores for video games. Do you listen to video game scores in their own right or only in the context of playing the games themselves?
DeleteIn my earlier blog posts I mentioned I am a classical guitarist so this is actually the kind of music that I find most relaxing and soothing when I am trying to decompress. Orchestral music accompanied by a classical choir employing Latin and Italian as their form of delivery is also extremely pleasing and complex so that's just my fore-ward for my thoughts on polyphony and this kind of music. I decided to go without Dr. Cleworth's song suggestion by des Prez since I have never listened to t before and am always looking to expand my music selection in this genre. Miserere mei Deus is an astonishly beautiful piece upon completion of listening to it. I love how it is unencumbered by anything except the vocalists and the timbre they produce is very consonant. I tried listening to the song in numerous instances. Thursday after school I looked it up and listened to the song my way home. Then today I listened to the song while I was doing the knowledge checks. Once again by itself, and now I am listening to it while writing this blog post. I wanted to get a clear picture of how I felt about this song and after listening, I have found it to be best experienced by itself but it can be useful when trying to study. As far as this piece goes for it being sacred music doesn't detract for me. I am a Christian and try to surround myself with music from all periods of Christianity's lifespan so listening to this as a sacred piece doesn't detract from the experience at all. In fact I feel that it enhances the experience. I suggest you guys also look up the lyrics in English translation because it helps connect the Latin words to the English meanings. As a classical musician, there are many works and composers I listen to on a daily basis. I personally am a huge Johann Sebastian Bach fan. His numerous preludes and symphonies always give me great joy when listening to them. My favorite piece of Bach's would probably have to be "Orchestral Suite No. 2 in B Minor, BWV 1067 – Menuet." It's just a very pleasing song and I recommend baroque music if you want to listen to beautiful orchestral compositions.
ReplyDeleteEthan, I find it interesting that you took the time to look up the lyrics to his song. I have to be honest, that idea never came to my mind while I was listening to des Prez's music but I really wish that it would have. You said that many of this works were focused on Christianity, which doesn't surprise me seeing what time period he came from. Even still, your post have peeked my interest! I think that I will go back and look for lyric videos of some of des Prez's music just to provide context on what I listened to previously. Perhaps you can help me get the ball rolling. Did you go on Youtube and search for lyric videos or did you look for translations on Google?
DeleteThanks, Ethan. I think what becomes clear from your post is that the music works in a way beyond the aesthetic. This is devotional music, and you respond to it, in part, as a devotee. I would imagine that provides a powerfully synthetic experience (as in bringing together domains: experience, knowledge, faith, etc). I always seek out similar alignments wherein music intermingles with multiple facets of my constitution, intellectually, experientially, and otherwise. As for Bach, yes -- Saint Matthew's Passion is in my uniformed opinion the greatest of all sacred oratories. I have seen it played live twice and found the experience transformational.
DeleteEthan, I also listened to Des Prez's Miserere Mei Deus and I found it to be a beautiful song just as you did. I have yet to look up the translation of the lyrics, but your post has tempted me to do so soon. I agree with your statement of the sacredness of the song does not detract from the song, for me, it adds even more meaning. I will have to find time to listen to your suggestion of "Orchestral Suite No. 2 in B Minor, BWV 1067 – Menuet." by Johann Sebastian Bach!
DeleteFor this week's blog post I chose to listen to a song titled "Magnificat" by des Prez. With this being said, I have to admit that I was fairly worried about having to listen to music from the renaissance era due to the fact that I have had assignments like this for other classes and they were the textbook definition of miserable! However, I found that the more I sat down and truly listened to des Prez's song without any distractions the more I began to value how beautifully composed his work was.
ReplyDeleteThe first time that I listened to "Magnificat" I used the song as background music while I worked on homework. I can't say that I noticed very much about the song from that point in time beyond the fact that the instrumentals tended to change rather frequently. These changes actually started to make me frustrated seeing as every time I got into a "groove" with the music and my homework the music would change and distract me from what I was doing. Likewise, at that point in time I didn't care to finish the song and turned it off so I could finish my homework.
The second time I listened to it I was walking to my fourth hour class with no distractions around me. Despite my previously negative experience with the song, I decided that listening to it while being distracted was definitely not going to give me an accurate representation of the piece as a whole. So, I pushed aside my first experience and listened to the track one more time. I quickly began to notice many more things about the song that I did not notice the first time I listened to it. Most notably I valued how there seemed to be intertwining vocals of a man and a woman. They both sang in falsetto but still managed to harmonize in a way that was extremely soothing to me.
If there is any take away from my experience it is that in order to enjoy something fully you should not go into it with a closed mind!
Hi, Josh! First of all, I want to acknowledge that I felt bad upon reading how "miserable" your previous experiences with this sort of assignments were. I am glad this one was better though.
DeleteSecond, I totally understand the feeling when you get into a 'groove' while doing homework (or other things), and then the song changes. Sometimes, when I listen to a song, I find myself wishing that the writers would have repeated a certain melodic section, for instance, four times instead of just two. I imagine this is similar to how you initially felt during this experience.
The "intertwining (male and female) vocals" you mentioned does seem like it would be delightful to listen to. Given your description of this piece, I am intrigued and will have to give it a listen sometime.
Third, I could not agree more with your last statement. I appreciate how even though you had a negative first reaction to the song, you gave it a second chance!
I really thought I'd be feel miserable when listening to songs of this era as well. I am glad that we ended up having a pleasant experience instead! I felt the same exact way about how soothing the harmonization is in these songs. I resonate with your last statement too. One should not really have a closed mind at all. I will probably be looking into more of these songs.
DeleteJosh: You have survived another Renaissance music assignment. Congratulations. At least this one was relatively brief and not the focus of a major assessment. I am glad you persevered despite the interruptions to your otherwise "grooved" homework session. Sometimes a second listen offers at least something to "chew on" of interest. By giving yourself a second listening experience, perhaps this music, which may seem untenable as listening material now, might present itself to you favorably many years down the road. See you on Tuesday.
DeleteJosh, I relate to your discovery of how listening to music in different settings affects the way we take it in. When I started this assignment, I was not very focused on the song I chose. It was hard to see the meaning behind it and somewhat distracting like you said. However, when I sat down and just listened, my experience completely changed. It is fascinating how pushing out all distractions can change your perspective. I think it is something I’ll have to do more often when listening to music.
DeleteJosh, I believe it is very interesting how your first experience with the song was negative but after giving it another chance, you enjoyed it. It just goes to show that one can't let one bad experience with the song affect how it will be later on once given a second chance. I understand why the change in "groove" would be frustrating but my guess is that it depends on a person's mood whether or not a piece is fit for them.
DeleteTo be completely honest, I was certain that I would be one of those people who thought of the music of the Renaissance time period to be boring. However, I am absolutely shocked on how much I actually enjoyed this music. The song I listened to was Des Prez's Qui Habitat. I believe this tune could be very useful for some type of relaxation session or for a study session. The music itself is extremely calming and makes me feel at ease. The harmonizing is just perfect. It feels as though so many different notes are being hit at the same time, and go so well together. I am so glad I came across this song.
ReplyDeleteI also listened to the same song and too feel to my demons. I was super closed minded about listening to Renaissance music, even though I play in an orchestra we haven't gone this far back in time to recreate a Renaissance piece. Qui Habitat would go beautifully with a nice spa day or study session, it's the recipe for zen and relaxation!
DeleteYes it was definitely soothing, and for me it helped me get through my homework! I thought it was pretty cool that your mind was changed too once you listened to the music.
DeleteI am addicted to music but I have a weird taste, I'm not very much of a good music reviewer but I have a real soft spot for music that's older than me. The song I listened to by des Prez was called "Qui habitat". The song felt like an angel was going to come through my roof and the vocals fit in perfectly with one another. I would use this song for relaxing or drawing to, something in the background that isn't all over the place. As I was listing to "Qui habitat" it was like sitting in a massaging chair and just becoming one with it. Another thing that really hooked me, was the soft vocals; they weren't "in my face" as other music vocals are. I've never really experienced what Renaissance music was until now. I'm use to playing Beethoven and other composers that my conductor recommends that won't completely kill our bows. I will admit however that I was very quick to judge Renaissance music because I've never been exposed to it but I honestly enjoyed listening. I will defiantly be adding another playlist to my phone, des Prez has me addicted like a kid in a candy store!
ReplyDeleteA massaging chair? Now, that's how I need to tackle all of my future, difficult listening assignments -- I too might feel like angels are in the rafters. In any event, I am glad you had a pleasant listening experience and will make des Prez a listening companion on your playlist -- Beethoven is resplendent but sometimes needs company!
DeleteYasmine, I like how you made the point that the music is not as “in your face,” as other songs. When I think about songs today, the lyrics do sometimes seem that way. Des Prez’s music was not like that. His pieces seem to flow together and almost bring peace over the listener. The lyrics are not meant to overwhelm, but to almost speak a message. They are subtle, yet powerful.
DeleteYasmine, I completely agree Des Prez's compositions seem to be sent from the angels themselves. The perfect harmonization from all of the voices provides the listener with such a profound experience. I was also not expecting much from renaissance music, but like you I quickly changed my opinion. Something about Des Prez's compositions makes the listener come back time and time again.
DeleteWhen I heard this song, I too was pleased with it not being so "in your face". I believe many of us may have also been quick to say we didn't like Renaissance music, but it seems like we all were pleasantly surprised by how much we actually enjoyed some songs.
DeleteI chose to listen to des Prez’s “Ave Maria.” I listened to it about three times and each time I had a different experience with the song. The first time, I was doing homework and had it playing in the background. I did not think much of the song or take away anything other than that it sounded pretty. The second time, I sat in my room and just tried to listen to it with no distractions and take in the song. It was an interesting experience. I do not know a lot about music regarding theory and technical aspects, but there were a few things in the song I noticed that intrigued me. There were sections with a few voices singing, then other voices and words would layer on top creating a mixture of many different sounds. The voices would eventually join together harmoniously, and it was one of the loudest points in the song. This made it seem powerful. It was as if a chorus of angels were singing. Some type of technique must have been used to make the voices weave so beautifully together. The song would alternate between quiet and loud sections, this helped to emphasize certain parts. It was also broken down towards the end so that there would be pauses and then singing would start again. After each pause, it was almost as if a new song had begun. It seemed like the turning of a page in a storybook. Overall, the song was beautiful and very well put together. I also listened to it a third time and found a version that had a translation of the words. It turns out this is a song about Mary. The choir is singing to her and honoring her with their words. They thank her for being the mother of their Savior and sing of how wonderful she is. I enjoyed listening to this song each time and found it peaceful. I, as a religious person, do listen to worship music on my own time. It is not as sacred an event as when the Catholic church gathered together to listen to these types of songs, but nonetheless it is a meaningful time. My worship music does differ greatly from the music that they would have used for worship during the Renaissance, but it is cool for me to see how music in the church has evolved over centuries and what it was used for in terms of sacredness then and now. I have not really had a chance to listen to pre-20th century composers until now, but after hearing this song I have a desire to dive deeper into this type of music. Des Prez and many others composed beautiful pieces and I hope to listen to more of their work in the future.
ReplyDeleteI liked that you mentioned harmony, because for me I think now a days in music, it's a technique that is not used than much in modern music now, at least from what I've noticed. Whenever I hear it being used in a song I get very excited and almost satisfied because it is such a pleasing thing to hear; the sound of two different tones perfectly complimenting each other is a really breath taking thing.
DeleteAshlynne, Ave Maria was a piece that I had considered writing about so I'm glad someone else looked into it! I love that you looked up the lyrics to the song, I do that often with songs that aren't in English so I can have a better grasp on the song. It is interesting when the voices have their own path and somehow at the climax of the song, meld together into a beautiful harmony. That's one of my favorite moments in music and I really enjoyed it in Ave Maria.
DeleteI listed to Miserere mei Deus and I did in fact enjoy it. I couldn't tell you what exactly I like about it but I do know it has to do something about the tone. A funny thing i just wanted to point out when I listened to a few of these pieces was the fact that i couldn't help but visualizing a scene in a thriller type of movie, or something like Angels and Demons, or even a treasure hunting movie! I am in fact listening to this music as I am typing this out, and I don't know if its just my mind playing tricks, but I feel as though I am having clearer thoughts that I usually do. As for listening to particular music to enhance my spiritual experience, I do, quite often actually, listen to Christian worship music. It is crazy how music can affect the audience, because for me, one of the biggest motivators that inspired me to look into exploring my faith the was music. Music can reach a place that sometimes normal face to face conversations can't, and for some people is the only thing they are willing to listen to. There is so much to learn from music and so much wisdom that could be acquired from it. I do have a bit of a background with music for I am actually in a band, as a vocalist, took a few classes in guitar and piano (but sadly realized I had very small hands which held me back from pursuing the two, but don't worry I soon got a ukulele and I play that instead), and I danced for 14 years (ballet being one of the subjects I was most invested in). Because I focused mostly on ballet, we were encouraged to listen to classical music resulting in me listening to ballet composers like Tchaikovsky (who composed music for some of my favorite ballets, The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, and Sleeping Beauty) and Adolphe Adam (who composed my all time favorite ballet, Giselle).
ReplyDeleteAs I searched through different songs to find one that truly captured my attention, I can't help but agree with Dr. Cleworth's claim of Des Prez's Miserere Mei Deus being remarkable. Just as my previous classmates have mentioned,I too, did not have high hopes for renaissance music, but boy was I wrong. Miserere Mei Deus is able to capture such strong emotion. The piece is truly moving. Despite it being an 18 minute song, I did not find myself getting bored of it, in fact the song intrigued me and kept strong hold of my attention the whole 18 minutes. I found myself listening to it on repeat. Miserere Mei Deus is enchanting, yet somehow haunting at the same time. Even without understanding any Latin I was still able to understand the emotion behind it. While listening to the song, I would get flashbacks of all of the times I attended church with my grandma and my cousins. The song flooded my body with the same emotions I felt while being with my family all those times. Des Prez's Miserere Mei Deus is a moving piece with the ability to capture strong emotion.
ReplyDeleteThe song "Qui Habitant" by Josquin des Perez was a song that really got my attention. I am surprised that I enjoyed it because I truly thought I wasn't going to like a musical Renaissance piece. I listened to this song a lot while drawing. I found it helped me concentrate on my work. What I did after nearly an hour and a half of listening to this song as I drew, I decided to focus solely on the song. What I noticed was that it started out soft and with a more feminine high pitched voice. More voices joined, quiet as well. As the song went on, male voices were added and the voices all became louder. There was a point where all voices did a crescendo all together and all the parts combined perfectly. I really did appreciate the entire song. It wasn't as "in your face" as some of the others I listened to were. I was captivated by the flow of the voices, how they all worked well with each other.
ReplyDeleteI also listened to "Qui Habitant" and I like how you mentioned the moment when all the voices came together. I found it quite alarming during this song, and some others I listened to, when the volume of the voices would suddenly increase, seemingly at random. It kind of reminds me of the way volume is occasionally increased in shōmyō (ancient Buddhist chants), except rapidly and sudden compared to the sluggish increases in shōmyō.
DeleteI have never truly listened to classical Renaissance music nor do I know anything regarding technical aspects or musical terminology, so I was interested to see how this assignment would play out for me. I wasn’t exactly sure what to listen to so I started off with the recommended, Des Prez’s “Miserere mei Deus”. The long pauses throughout caught my attention making me wonder if there’s a single continuous story, or separate narratives, or no story at all. I briefly attempted to look for the translated lyrics but I wasn’t sure how accurate my results were, and frankly I lost interest. Perhaps my favourite part of “Miserere mei Deus” was about 8:20 into the song when one of the vocalists rolled the R sound, creating a pleasant but short vibration in the song.
ReplyDeleteDetermined to find a piece that I felt passionate about I moved on to “Qui habitat” by the same composer. Although I didn’t feel anything emotionally, I did enjoy this song more than the previous one. I think it was the calm, relaxing melody. I discovered that I can’t listen to this song, along with some others, louder than at about a third of my laptop’s max volume. The high-pitched vocals sort of pulsate in my head making it hard to focus.
Next I listened to “Magnificat Quarti Toni” and “Missa Pange Lingua”, both composed by Des Prez. At this point I was starting to think they all sound very similar. Not the exact same song, both close enough that if you played them consecutively with no pauses I doubt I’d be able to tell when one starts and the next begins. I chose to listen to these two without looking at the biblical portraits the youtube videos provide. The latter of the two gave me an interesting imagery of mermaids singing during the higher-pitched parts and sailors singing during the lower parts. I enjoyed this one the most with the new fantasy context I associated it with.
In a final attempt, I tried out Palestrina’s “Missa Papae Marcelli”. I hoped that a different composer would bring me something new after a couple hours of listening to Prez. Someone who has studied composing or even someone that has taken a simple music class could probably have listed the drastic differences between this song and the rest I have talked about, but being a person that has not studied composing nor taken a music class, I noticed no difference. I really tried to find appreciation for this music but it was hard for me to feel anything without forcing myself. I don’t particularly like it or dislike it. I won’t groan in annoyance when I hear it played, nor will I seek out listening to it. Being someone that grew up in a house where the main influences were Buddhism, Philippine culture, and Japanese culture, it’s very hard to feel anything sacred or spiritual about the Renaissance music I’ve listened to.
I understand what you mean about the high notes in some of these songs. They really do pierce your eardrums in an annoying way. But, it is impressive someone can hit notes that high.
DeleteI'm not as religious as my family anymore, so I too don't feel any sacred connection to Renaissance music as someone else might. I also feel bad that I don't know much about music, so I can't describe this music as it deserves...
It seems that you and I approached this blog post from very similar perspectives. I also know very little about musical terminology/theory and I too began with Dr. Cleworth's recommended Miserere mei Deus. However unlike you I did not explore the other suggestions afterward, as I felt tired and satisfied after experiencing one of Mr. des Prez's creations. You've inspired me to come back at a later date and check out his other compositions.
DeleteSadly I am not very adapt at this subject of music critiquing; I am not musically inclined and although I've always wanted to learn an instrument (mainly string instruments like violin or harp), I've never gotten around to actually learning. That being said, I do use music as a sense of inspiration when I write something. Music is a great aid to setting the tone, establishing characters, and feeling the setting of the story as you write. For any media really. Recently I've started watching "Reign", very loosely based show about the life of Queen Mary of Scots. What takes me out of it is the use of modern music in what is suppose to be France in 1540. Hearing Imagine Dragons while two of the characters sword fight doesn't seem appropriate for a period piece. I mainly write period pieces, and music like that from the Renaissance brings me into the setting, and allows me to write freely. I chose the song "Faulte d'argent" by Josquin des Prez, and simply closing my eyes seems to transport me back to that time, sitting in the church and looking up at a tall cross standing tall in the center. The choir singing as I bow my head to pray, the harmonies coming together to raise goosebumps on my skin. I wanted to see what else could be imagined, so I found "El Grillo" by des Prez. This one is more humorous, and I can imagine children dancing to it in the middle of the marketplace or town square. I can almost hear them laughing and frolicking along to it too; maybe it's just my mind as a writer, but music like this gets the gears in my brain turning to write something new. Writers always have ways to get their fingers clacking at a keyboard, music happens to be one of mine.
ReplyDeleteYou said that your music critiquing wasn't good but you basically explained the pieces pretty well. "El Grillo" was a dance like song in the time signature of "2/2" or cut time and was is usually meant for more fast and upbeat pieces. However, the "Faulte d'argent" by Josquin des Prez is expressing the issues about the plague and the money so it could be considered more of a sorrow piece and maybe a little spiteful but I do like how you use a current show and use it as an example of how our music wouldn't fit into that time period or writing style and also, to compare music from now to back then.
DeleteI find this topic very exciting since I have been taking music theory and such music classes for my Music Ed degree. I noticed in Des Pres "Miserere mei Deus" The melody passes a lot through the basses and upper voices and then comes to meet again in unison or in octaves and then splits again. I know that in older times a lot of dissonant chords were frowned upon so I only here consonant and perfect intervals. Also he's following a lot of the "rules" used during that time. The Soprano and Alto voices usually use step wise motions in their notes while the bass jumps around to create the motion in the piece. The mood of the overall song is gloomy and yet very uplifting. I can here the same chords being sung but he does use many leaps and many dynamic changes to really make the piece come to life. Just listening to this choral piece gives me chills and makes me tear up, its really beautiful. There aren't any choral composers that I've been meaning to listen to but I have been meaning to listen to some of Gustav Holst's pieces other than "The Planets". The only other choral song I have listened to was " O Magnum Mysterium" by Giovanni Gabrieli and its very similar to this piece by Des Pres. I remember playing the band version of "O Magnum Mysterium" and I practically cried. The song was so beautiful and meaningful and it sounded so heavenly.
ReplyDeleteI just finished listening to "Miserere mei Deus" and I didn't notice when it changed to a new song automatically. Like I said before, many of the older songs used the same rules when it came to writing certain parts. That still doesn't change how beautiful the whole piece sounded. Listening through it gave me a sense of calm while writing this comment. Music has changed since then but in a good way. Not to say the older music isn't appreciated since it did start us on the right track to get music where it is today.
The first piece that I decided to listen to was Prez's "Pangue Lingue" as recommended. As a person that plays music and listens to music quite often, I did not particularly enjoy the piece as I listened more and more. I initially enjoyed the work of art but as it went on I could only hear the phrase "Kyrie Eleison" repeated over and over again. I know that is how the piece is written and intended to to be sung probably but I just can not help hearing it over everything. It almost distracted me from the beauty and pitch portrayed by the singers. I continued to listen to a few more versions of this piece and then decided to move on to another artist.
ReplyDeleteAfter listening to multiple pieces, I decided to take a better look at Palestrina's "Sicut Cervus" for a little more time. Just compared to Prez's piece alone, I was drastically more interested in the art being produced. When I listened to Palestrina, not only could I enjoy what was being produced musically through quality of tone and pitch, but I could also listen to the different lyrics and sounds they were making instead of just one repeated phrase. While I could still not really understand the meaning of what they were saying, there was so much more beauty in what I was hearing and I thought it was much more enjoyable to listen to.
While listening to all the pieces in this assignment, I was not preoccupied or working on anything else. I was just listening and enjoying what I was hearing purely for the purpose of getting information for this assignment. Although, I was using it as some background music while writing tonight to help me throughout this assignment. The fact that most of the music was sacred did not really bother me or make more attached. I decided to listen to the music from a an open-minded point of view and just judge it with a musical ear. Overall, I did really enjoy listening to some renaissance works of art as I do play music myself and it is always interesting to learn about something that I enjoy to do.
In preparation for this post I choose to follow Dr. Cleworth’s advice and listen to des Prez’s Miserere mei Deus as I have an interest in “indescribable beauty.” I’ll admit that I’m not the most musically knowledgeable. I’ve been looking through the comments so far and have been ignorant of words like polyphonic (which I assume means multiple sounds) and falsetto, which is unsurprising considering that I haven’t put much effort into understanding music from a creator’s perspective. Of music, I know only what sounds good to me, I view great works of music as those that can invoke a certain state of mind (like productive, or introspective) or a certain thought (human capacity, past, future, etc.). From this consumer standpoint, Miserere mei Deus certainly qualifies as a great work of music. In me, the 18 minute performance first invoked a feeling of contemplation, then, as I sat with headphones in and eyes closed, my mind was flooded with images of religious iconography. The intentional mystique created by the obscure language and enthralling rhythms brought about a flurry of theological and philosophical thoughts all doing battle in the arena of my mind. It was pleasant to contemplate the magnificent structures that this music would’ve surely been performed within, the churches and cathedrals standing as tangible demonstrations of what human belief can be manifested into. There is a part of me that wishes we (as in the communities I belong to) currently held our understanding of the world in such high regard as to worship its very tenets. It would certainly make artistic expression more relevant to me.
ReplyDeleteAs I sat down and listened to Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina I was reminded a lot of some of my childhood memories, but more vividly those where I would be inside a Catholic church. I remember the voices, the people, the church, the music.. everything so clear as if it were just yesterday. Even though I may not know much about music like melodies, composers and that sort of thing I do love music. Like art, I can see and feel music's purpose and I find myself catching a glimpse of memories that were once the best moments in my life. As I listened to Giovanni I found myself in such a calm mood (Nothing like how the Red Hot Chili Peppers put me). Even though it was not as instrumental or lyrical as some of my overall favorite songs, it was poetic enough to take me towards a place of reflection and that to me makes music, and Renaissance music, worth listening to. In all honestly, the first time I heard Giovanni it was already in my head that I was going to instantly judge it, and without a doubt, I did. I thought it was boring and I think the main reason that I was so instant to come to that thought was because I was reminded of my experiences in a Catholic church. I hated when I was forced to go to church because as a typical 6-year old girl would think, church was boring when all you did was stand and listen to the people around you sing words in a way you couldn't even understand. However, after some hours I went back and listened to the same song again, and again and again. It came to a surprise to me that even though I thought the music was boring the first time by the second time, third, and fourth time I was close to crying. My reflection towards Giovanni's piece moved me because I found a point of reflection in the way that I couldn't the first time. Maybe it was because I kept checking my phone the first time or because I wasn't in a calm environment the second time but by the fourth try I was moved by something that was there from the start.
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